b a t t l e c a t . n e t

In 2007, my friend Jess and I would meet up almost every Tuesday evening to drink wine and eat tapas.

Our favourite venue was the Richmond Hotel on Rundle St. There was a hot bartender with amazing hands, but I think the main reason we kept going back was for The Cheese.

The Cheese is tasty morsels of haloumi, cherry tomatoes and mint, all wrapped up in a filo pastry parcel and then shallow fried.

I was speaking to Jess today on Skype and she somehow dropped the word Cheese into conversation where it normally wouldn’t have been.

And then I realised… I had almost the right ingredients for Cheese Production in my kitchen. I had some cherry tomatoes, just on the edge of being too ripe. No haloumi or mint, but feta and basil would work just as well. I’d been saving some filo pastry for another baking opportunity after a spanakopita (Greek Spinach Pie) became more pie than spinach.

So in honour of Jess (and occasional Tuesday night associates Ellie, Simon and Simon) I made some replica Cheese.

While we may be separated by distance, Skype and Replica Cheese can help bring us together in spirit and stomach at least.